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OK, I'm in another country so I cant advise you about where to find stuff but I've had to be a bit creative with low impact exercise because I have a bad ankle. I've been having a look around at www.collagevideo.com, they have a wealth of exercise DVD's and can provide some guidance. You can even view a clip of any DVD you're considering purchasing. You can get cycling DVD's to use with an indoor bike both here and at www.spinervals.com. too. So you can do a spin type program at home if you hire or buy a spinning bike. I'd recommend this, interval training such as spinning (which is basically an aerobics program on a bike) will give you better and faster results than just hopping on and peddling away, trying to remember to keep the pace up. I've also been using a rebounder, there's rebounder specific workouts you can get or for lower impact I've been adapting Leslie Sansone's Walk Away the Pounds series, it ups the intensity but lowers the impact. I've also been swimming which is fantastic all over exercise, if you have a local pool and my pool runs a deep Water running class which is mega-fun! But of course you'd have to brave the cold for that, I have trouble doing that in a Melbourne winter and it never gets cold enough to snow here, doesnt go below about 9 or 10 degrees celcius as we have a really temperate climate. Perhaps you could look at hiring or buying an elliptical machine too - and yes, you can get stuff for that too - www.cardiocoach.com!

Leslie - Thanks for the tip on mydailyplate.com. I have been doing fitday for a couple of months, but checked out mydailyplate. It seemed like a hassle at first to move to another site, but I am very impressed with their food database. I'm still trying to figure everything out. I was getting irritated with fitday so your suggestion couldn't have come at a better time. Sorry to hear about your flipped port. I hope it all goes smoothly and you'll be ready to roll again in no time. Good luck. gdf - I had my 2nd fill a week ago. This time was kind of weird. At first, not a whole lot of restriction, but as the week has gone on I feel more restricted. I'm sure I'll loose it again in a few days, so I'm a happy camper for now. I go for #3 in three weeks. I'm hoping and praying that it will be the one that lasts longer than 7-10 days. I had gained a couple of pounds two weeks ago. I weigh in tomorrow and hope it's back off. Good luck!!

I love this blog entry! You go girl! I was sleeved on 10/26 - haven't lost a ton of weight but 16 pounds so far. The other day I put on a pair of jeans that I tried to put on before surgery but they were so very uncomfortable that I stopped wearing them. Well, I wore those jeans three days in a row! OK - I am taking a few weeks off so I only wore them when I went out so 3 straight days is OK!!! (Smile). I finally washed them yesterday - and dried them but I am kinda scared to try them on again....I plan to do that tomorrow when I go in for my Dr. visit! Unlike most....I am a dryer junkie (The dryer is my iron) but have not worn jeans in a while..just pants with stretchy waistbands and when those started to get uncomfortable, I knew I had a problem!

I started with WW last June as I was in the process of getting approved for the band. For me, I really needed something to kick start me into committing to the journey. I personally needed the accountability of going to meetings and getting on a scale in front of somebody (no matter how geeky - I was even proud of the gold stars) :ohmy: I haven't been going to meetings since the surgery (September 07), but I am still following the plan, keeping a food journal and counting points. Like Julie, I am going with 20 to 25 points per day (although I am still allowed 29), for the most part. What I do like is that I can feel reasonably confident that I can go up some points and not gain weight! Would I go to meetings again if I was struggling - ABSOLUTELY- I want to do everything I can to continue with my success. I have 6 cc's in my 10 cc band, but don't really feel any restriction. I really am doing well with following the WW flex points plan - it helps me feel accountable, helps me keep my portions reasonable, helps me choose healthy foods and best of all I am losing weight (so far I have lost a total of 75 pounds since June). One of the things that I am most proud of (besides the actual weight loss) is that I have been choosing a relatively healthy diet at least 80% of the time (probably closer to 90%) for over 6 months now. I have never done that in my life and I have been obese my entire life (including childhood). My doc is so impressed with my progress that we have decided to not do any more fills until I start to plateau or I find that my hunger is getting too difficult to manage. I won't claim that I don't have head hunger - I do just about every day, but I am able to recognize what it is and cope, for the most part. Even my "slips" are relatively innocuous. I go back and forth on my feelings on not being filled to my sweet spot - then I read about people eating only 1/4 or 1/2 cup of food at a time and think maybe I shouldn't be so anxious to get there . I do think that the band is working for me by keeping me "satisfied" for longer periods of time, but maybe that is just me too. Who knows.

Hi all Just after a bit of advice since I am relatively new here. This subject has probably been done to death, but I am going to jump in and ask anyway. :eek: I was wondering if anyone had done a pre-Optifast diet before their banding? For example, I have 8 weeks until I get banded, which means I have 6 weeks until I start the Opti. I am considering starting the Opti now and having one meal Opti and the rest normal food. Then with 4 weeks to go I will change to 2 Opti's per day and one normal, with the two weeks (or 10 days for me) prior to surgery having 3 Opti per day. Does this make sense? Is this a good/bad/indifferent idea that will assist me prior to surgery, or would I be beating myself silly doing this? The other question would be which one of the meals would be best replaced first? dinner, Breaky or lunch. Too much to think about! All opinions greatly sought as you guys have all the experience. Thanks all

You are doing fantastic!!! 10 pounds in three weeks?? over 3 lbs. a week!! You can't hope to do better. I understand what you are thinking. For the most part we've all been there. It will come off if you do the right things. And 10 lbs. in three weeks certainly seems like you are already doing the right things. Best of luck!!!! Keep your head up.

10 pounds in less than a month sounds pretty good to me. What did you expect?

My hubby had RNY 10 years ago and lost 130 lbs. When he complained to his surgeon at his year appointment about people telling him he was too thin, or looked 'sickly', his surgeon said this: "There are so many overweight and obese people these days, nobody even knows what a normal weight looks like anymore. Ignore them."

I had done really well on the pre-op diet.. i had lost 25 pounds in the first 10 weeks so I was starting to think I could do it on my own. The last 2 weeks ....I have lost nothing. I was reminded as to why I need weight loss surgery. I am not sure what I have done wrong in the past two weeks as to why I am not losing but I am starting to lose heart and want to give up trying. Lucky for me my three month trial is over on Tuesday so I just need to make sure I don't gain wait between Tuesday and surgery day. If I was closer to the 40 BMI then to 50 I might would consider to keep trying but I have so far to go and getting close to that menopause age which makes women gain weight. I need to action now.

I am also 22 and had gastric sleeve on April 5th. I actually posted concerns like this on here about a month ago but have had not one complication since my surgery. The only thing that happened after was I threw up from all the pain meds and anaistesia. I don't do well with pain meds. I will be straight honest with you that it will be a very big challenge for you in the beginning but I am 3 months out and struggled terribly in after but am now doing better and do not regret my decision. I did horribly the first couple months but I truly know I would of ate myself to death if I did not choose this option. The struggle is all mental and I still deal with anxiety and depression but I have always had it but masked it with food. I am now forced to face my demons head on and not hide behind food but I feel like that I really did need that. I have lost 35 pounds so far and already have so much more energy and no pain in my back and neck. It will be scary at first but I promise you will make it through. 4 members of my family had gastric bypass and are 10 years out with no complications. If you ever need someone to talk to you can message me ❤ Sent from my 0PM92 using the BariatricPal App

OK OK I CHEATED!!!! I feel so guilty, I have been on this diet now for 10 days and I have been doing everything I am suppose to be doing and then I got really nervous and started talking about all the stuff I am not going to eat anymore then it happened we went out for dinner and I ordered steak fajitas I didn't eat the beans, rice, sour cream, or guac. but I did eat some steak, green peppers, tomatoes, and of course tortillas!!! I only ate about 1/4 of the meal but I felt so guilty afterwards. I am starting to doubt myself.... Can I really do this?! Am I cursed to being FAT forever?! I am praying for strength!!! 4 days until surgery!!!!

m1 - light swiss cheese/ coffee w/cream m2 - handfull of nuts - about 15 nuts m3 - 2 oz of chicken - I couldn't eat any more. I must be tighter today. m4 - taboli, about 1/2 cup, and a few bites of salad and 1/2 of deviled egg m5 Exercise - LBWO - 5 am Quads - Seated leg press 12 - 35 10 - 35 8 - 40 6 - 50 12 - 40 Leg extensions 10 - 30 lbs (just couldn't do 12) Hamstrings Seated leg curls 12 - 15lbs 10 - 25 8 - 35 6 - 45 12 - 40 dead lifts 12 - 5lbs dumbbells in each hand (10 lbs total) Calves horizontal calf 12 - 50 10 - 70 8 - 90 6 - 110 12 - 100 Calf raises 12 - 5 lbs dumbbells ABS- incline crunches 20, 20, 20 Hammer strength ab crunch 10 - 10lbs 10 - 10lbs - this is a killer ab workout Exercise #2 - 20 min on Elliptical machine (HIIT) oh baby, am I working it or what? I'm actually starting to become obsessed with exercise! Notes - wt 191.8 - OMG - am I really going to see 189 soon? I'm getting so excited.

I did well today ... no cheating... 2 protein shakes and 1 meal (salad with low cal fat free dressing...) I did alot of walking today (shopping) and did 10 min. of bike riding. Still no word about insurance... I go to the surgeon for my preop tomorrow... hopefully they'll have good news for me!

Last year, instead of going to the WLS seminar I thought "I don't want anything that drastic..I can do this without surgery"! Well I was as wrong - I'm heavier and heading towards 300lbs. I have hypertension, hypothyroidism, PCOS, Mild sleep apnea, interstitial cystitis, joint pain, degenerative disc disease, aches and pains all the time (back, hip, ankles). I can not do this myself and I don't want to be dead or riding around in a hoveround (?sp) when I'm 50 (48 now!). I figure at the rate I'm going I'll be diabetic before long! In addition to my health issues - I can't stand the sight of myself. My weight is impacting my social life. WLS isn't for everyone and it certainly isn't an easy decision but it's a decision I wish I made 10 or more years ago! :-) Sent from my XT1254 using the BariatricPal App

Breakfast - Coffee/cream lunch - 3 whole wheat crakers with soft cheese and turkey salad spread on them. dinner - 3 bites of roast, small small bites - then was bad - 4 or maybe 6 girl scout cookies - then I threw the rest away. Exercise - None, DH had surgery and had to take care of him Wt - 192.8

In at 8:30, surgery at 10:45 (they were backed up), recovery at 12:00, room at 1:00, home the next morning. 23 hours is considered an outpatient procedure. I also had a hiatal hernia repaired, but no extra time and no morphine required. I am woman..hear me cough!!!

Hi, I'm about 10 days post op and 4th day on phase 2. Since surgery I've felt like there's something stuck in my throat. Saw my surgeon a week after and he said that's normal and can last up to a month. Does anyone else have it or had it? Also for the past 4-5 months I've had this weird shallow burp/hiccup. When it started I had the band and they kept taking Fluid out thinking the issue was caused by the band being too tight. After the band was completely emptied it slipped but went up instead of down. Had it removed. Before that I had an endoscopy, then an esophagus test where they put a tube up my nose and down into my throat to check the motility of my esophagus. All these tests showed nothing. My surgeon thought maybe I had scar tissue from my original lap band surgery and hernia and that he would take care of it during my sleeve surgery and it would be gone. WRONG! I now am still in pain from the sleeve surgery....still have those annoying horrible throat burp/hiccups and yesterday I tried eating a small piece of fish and was vomiting and dry heaving so bad I thought for sure I popped internal stitches. I'm at my wits end! Anyone have/had any of these problems and can maybe shed some light? Only positive is that I've lost a lot since I either can't eat or afraid to. Negative is I'm probably not getting anywhere near enough food, liquid or Vitamins. Hopeless and regretting surgery.

Oh yeah. I was terrified but I was completely knocked out and they had no issues. Awake in recovery in about 10 minutes. Sent from my HTC One M9 using the BariatricPal App

Its been a long Month, things in my life have been hectic, my knee surgery really put a damper on things. My house flooding was a total nightmare, and my grandmothers passing was a heartache. As they say, Old habits are hard to break. I realized just how much I was an emotional eater. I did it before I even realized I was eating for comfort. I am trying to "think" before I eat now and it seems to be working. I'm trying to get back to the basics and follow the rules. They are easy to sway away from the longer you have the band. But let me tell you, they are rules that you need to follow for the rest of your life. At least, I need to follow them. My knee is improving everyday. I'M OFF MY CRUTCHES officially today!!!! I'm so excited!!!! I still have my brace on, but soon, that will be leaving too! I'm still tight, and I still have to ice it down throughout the day, but I can deal with that. I am going to probably get to start out SLOWLY next week on the elliptical machine. YAY. My house, it looks so pretty now. Still have a lot of tiny things to do, but it looks like a home again!!!! I love my new wood floors, I love my new tile in the bathroom, I love my new paint in the bedrooms and new carpet. It looks like a totally new home (its about 40 years old). My restriction has really kicked in, I have to slow down on drinking and eating. I get full quickly, so I'm making sure I eat good healthy protein that my body needs. I'm taking the quickslim 30 (on my 2nd day of it), so I'm anxious to see if this will help me as well. I don't feel any different taking it, I don't feel like I have a lot of energy, or don't feel like I don't. I really feel the same. I do think it could be helping me with my appetite. I was going to "try" and stay off scales, but I couldn't do it, I ended up weighing this morning and it said 170.4. So, I'm losing!!!!! I am hoping by Monday, I will see the 160's! OMG, I can't believe I'm going to weigh in the 160's. Thats so hard for me to comprehend. when I say it out loud, or type it out loud, it just seems so unreal to me. It makes me want to cry. My eyes are tearing up now. I just can't believe I'm no longer morbidly obese. I am no longer Severe overweight, but the charts show Overweight and getting close to the "healthy weight" range. I'm out of the Red Zone on the charts. I never want to go back to my old self, never ever ever! I feel so much better now. I love my new me. I'm trying to look past my imprefections (stretch marks, scars, sagging skin etc) and see what my DH tells me all the time - That I'm beautiful. Thats so hard for me, I still see myself as a fat ugly person. I know others don't see me that way, I get told I'm beautiful all the time, however it is hard to have a good self image of myself when I let myself go for so long.....but this is something I am working on. I want to be happy with my body and my looks and accept the things that I cannot change. Okay - back to work I go............

Well the pbing has stop so that I am so greatful for. I was really worried that my smoking had done some damage but as of now Iam fine (other then my dam teeth hurting) I did a light work out on the wii system but I havent been working out like I should be but thats ok my personal training begins tomorrow I hope I really stick with it I am excited. Lets see how excited Iam after the work out that is my true test. I dont have that same go get it attitude that I had a couple of weeks ago I want that feeling back. I have been working alot and all I can think about is getting home and jumping in the bed. I havent been hungrey at all thank God and I havent been drinking my water like I am suppose to. I just cant seem to get it all together at the same time. I am not smoking so I guess thats a start now I will conquor one at a time untill I have a sed. I can deal with. I just admire those women that do it all with LB take care of a family and still have time for themselves. I feel over loaded and all I have is me hell I dont even have a cat a plant and my son he is on this I am 19 and grown kick I only hear from him when he needs money. I say that just to say have no valid excuse why I cant get it together other then I lost that spark I had. I love my band I just want the same love for it like when we first meet. I need that spark back:tongue2: Michelle

I found this information and I thought it was good to post it's something that some of the long term sleevers have concerns about even some of the newbies have concerns about what if: Weight regain after bariatric surgery can be an uncomfortable subject and one that both surgeons and patients want to avoid talking about, but can’t. To be sure, weight regain happens – the real question revolves around the cause. We understand that the choice to have weight loss surgery was a big one and the return of weight (in any amount) is disappointing. But understanding the way our bodies work and what may be behind the weight regain can help us address the issue more effectively. First and foremost, don’t get down on yourself. In all likelihood, your surgery did work and you are doing the right things, but our bodies change. As our bodies change, so too do our needs. Natural Regain: Some weight regain after bariatric surgery and especially gastric bypass is normal. If you regain 5-10% of your excess body weight after a few years of losing consistently, don’t fret. Speak to your surgeon, but it is likely no problem at all. Diet modification: Many of us tend to overdo it in our diets. It is tempting to over-diet, but the results can be counterproductive. Crash diets can even cause us to retain more fat than a diet of moderation. Be sure that you follow your diet plan closely and work with your dietician to ensure the very best results. Exercise habits: As with diets above, there is a fine line between good and bad exercise. Understanding the exercises to which your body responds and working with an exercise physiologist can help ensure that your exercises are doing good and not harm. Pouch or stoma enlargement: The stomach pouch and/or stoma (the opening into the stomach) can in fact stretch over time. This can cause mild or significant weight regain and can be corrected with one of several simple outpatient procedures. Revision Surgery can be effective, but ONLY as a last resort. Simple outpatient procedures and even major surgery can be used to revise an unsuccessful primary procedure. While revisions are generally effective, they do carry a higher risk of complications and all other solutions to the weight regain should be implemented before considering a revision procedure.

No one but your surgeon can answer that... He may oversew, which would bring the size down.. my surgeon said that some docs cut close to the bougie, others loose, some oversew, others don't.. so the size of the bougie does not tell the whole story. My doc used a 36, over sewed, and left the Pylorus end loose to avoid potential problems. I have never had any problems eating what I want, or vomiting after eating... I don't lose super fast, but steady. I have read one study that said that the amount of fundus cut off during the surgery (to the patients in the study) did not predict weight loss. see page 10 for study, it has to do with fundus size, content voiding speed and weightloss with the sleeve... Sleeve Gastrectomy Abstracts-1.pdf

A&E is a television network here. The arts and entertainment network. It's 10 a.m. and i haven't heard from the surgEon. I will go to the ER if i don't get any answers today. I would like to not have to pay the 200 dollars. But I just don't understand why they wouldn't want to figure this out. Couldn't there be something wrong that could cause worse problems if not fixed?

My dr. told me to wait at least ten days. If I was still taking the pain medication after ten days, then I had to wait until after I was off the pain meds. This was the longest 10 days of my life.

Me too, TrueBlue. Had my first sliming episode today, was stuck and PB'd, but instead of coughing "it" out, it went back down. Thank goodness it only lasted for about 10 minutes, but it hurt! I have restriction with my first fill which was on Monday. I will never make that mistake again, eating too fast, too big bites and not chewing enough. OUCH!